Best Big Brother in the World
by Kato Chinatsu
Summary: If there was to be that one title in the whole wide world which the sixteen-year old Akashi Seijuuro fervently wished to keep all to himself, that title would have to be the "Best Big Brother in the World" for his five-year old adopted brother, Kuroko Tetsuya. A brotherly complex gone a whole new level. (CH 2: 10 YEARS LATER)
1. Chapter 1

_**Kato: **__This is a birthday fic for __**Roselilia**__. It's her birthday this week! You guys should greet her. ;) For this fic, I had to use the first name basis because in this story, Tetsuya retained his last name. It would be awkward to refer to him as Kuroko with the story's plot so... yes~_

_**Concept of the Story: **__ If there was to be that one title in the whole wide world which the sixteen-year old Akashi Seijuuro fervently wished to keep all to himself, that title would have to be the "Best Big Brother in the World" for his five-year old adopted brother, Kuroko Tetsuya._

_**Disclaimer:**__ Kuroko no Basket solely belongs to Fujimaki Tadatoshi._

* * *

**_Best Big Brother in the World_**

If there was to be that one title in the whole wide world which the sixteen-year old Akashi Seijuuro fervently wished to keep all to himself, that title would have to be the _"Best Big Brother in the World" _for his five-year old adopted brother, Kuroko Tetsuya.

To start of, Seijuuro was not exactly the typical... brotherly figure any child could ever hope for. The teenager was brought up with the mindset of accepting nothing but perfection, and every single detail of his being followed that mindset. From his physical appearance, down to his self-presentation... From the activities he immersed himself in to his academic achievements. Everything boiled down to _perfection_. As an individual, he himself admit openly that he had grown to be quite an arrogant bastard. For all he cared, he had every reason to look down upon others. Not only was he arrogant, but he was, in every sense of the word, quite a spoiled young man. Everything he demanded of was given to him with just a snap of his fingers.

The concept of having to tend to an adopted child was an unwelcomed... proposition to him in the beginning. He gave due reasons for his refusal, of course. Children were hard to care for, especially toddlers as the energy that they possess were overwhelmingly high, almost abnormally so. Children also possessed demonic mood swings that could rival that of an adult, just that the adults' case were more irritating to handle as of expectations that they act more mature. Even upon the date wherein the child was brought to their humble abode, he stuck to his reasoning and refused to accept the child into his life. In actual fact, he was prepared to take any means necessary to rid the child from his life. But, as soon as his sight set upon his adopted brother, his original mindset was discarded unceremoniously as his eyes took in the frail body of the child before him.

Tetsuya back then... He was such a frail, small boy. His eyes were almost completely lifeless when they dared to gaze at his own heterochromatic hues. A few bruises peeked past the flimsy attire that was of his clothes, ruining the pale skin that was underneath. The child, at his young age, was abused by his father or so he was told. His mother was someone that Tetsuya never spoke about, and Seijuuro respected that secrecy of information even up until the present.

It was but his arms, those frail thin arms that stretched out yearningly for him, that beckoned him to pick the toddler up and embrace him securely in his arms.

For once, how pleased he was that his belief was wrong for once.

Tetsuya, to him, was such a highly exquisite and irreplaceable angelic personification of purity. The surreal shade of natural glowing aquamarine of the toddler's fluffy tresses and irises, and the paleness of his milky white complexion, only further accentuated that angelic glow that exuded solely from that cherub being. Never in Seijuuro's entire existence of sixteen years had he met someone who could par or stand on even grounds with his adopted brother when it was on a context of adorability, not that he had much to base upon. Just as Tetsuya was, personality wise, living up to that purity and kind glow his physical appearance was unconsciously exuding, the child in all sense of the word and by all means, was unquestionably one extremely adorable creature which makes him so irresistible even to the ever so stoic Akashi Seijuuro. As such, there was, under any circumstances, no means by which he could possibly refuse the toddler.

There had to be dozens of instances by which he had succumbed to the toddler's charms. For once, there was a time wherein Tetsuya sneaked into his room during school hours wherein he was away and fumbled with his clothes. Least to say, when he got back from a bad day at school and found the door to his room, his personal _territory_, slightly ajar, his temper had snapped.

Kicking the door to his room open, he found his closet wide open with a variety of his once ironed and neatly folded clothes scattered messily along the floor. Tetsuya must have realized that his brother was in an extremely bad mood as he scurried to hide beside his brother's four-poster bed, a fraction of his head peeking out just enough to reveal frightened aquamarine pupils. At the mere sight of the fear on his brother's features, Seijuuro willed himself to calm down in favor of his younger brother, knowing what might be passing through the child's mind at that moment. Figuratively speaking, he could almost smell the fear emanating from the child, further made evident by the trembling of his frame.

Kneeling carefully down on his knees by the door, he placed his bag on one side before heaving a deep sigh to calm himself down.

"I won't hurt you, Tetsuya. Now come here... Please?" Seijuuro added the last word after a brief pause, hoping that it would convince his brother to come out.

The boy did so, his frame trembling ever the more with every step that he took. Once he stepped away from the bed, Seijuuro could clearly see that his brother had attempted to wear his school uniform that was sizes too big for him, thus why it was heavily bundled up along the arms. He could not repress a small smile from curling his lips; a smile which the trembling child took notice of almost immediately as he scurried towards his brother, wrapping his small arms as best and as tightly as he could around Seijuuro's neck.

Allowing for his eyes to close, Seijuuro embraced his brother gently, burying his face against the fluffy aquamarine tresses of his brother's hair and inhaling his sweet scent while soothingly caressing his locks.

"I'm sorry. Did I scare you?" Seijuuro asked in a soft voice, chuckling lightly when his brother buried his cherub face against the crook of his neck.

"Sei_-nii_ didn't..." Tetsuya denied in a hushed voice but his arms nonetheless tightened around his older brother's neck, contradicting his claim.

Knowing his brother would simply deny it repeatedly despite the obvious fact that he was, Seijuuro simply hummed in acknowledgement of the response, scooping the toddler up in his arms and bringing them both to lie down on his bed.

"Well then... what is my little rascal doing playing dress-up inside my room?" Seijuuro asked in a calm tone, weaving his fingers through the toddler's hair.

"I was not playing dress-up," Tetsuya denied once again, his small hands loosening their grip across his brother's neck to grip the collar of his shirt instead. "I just want to wear your uniform."

The motive induced the teen to arch one of his brows out of curiosity and piqued interest.

"Now why would you do that?" he voiced his question out, pulling back slightly to look at his brother's features.

"Because I want to go with you to school," the child answered simply.

At that time, the teen did not really fully understand the meaning of his brother's words. In his mind, it was simply an innocent conveyance of his brother to want to stay by his side, and he believed in that for some time as his brother repetitively wore his shirt on so many cases. It was not until he surprised the toddler by fetching him from his kindergarten school that he fully understood the weight of the toddler's words.

From behind the heavily tinted windows of their family car, he saw the maltreatment his brother received from his supposed playmates. Their scornful expressions as they stared down upon him, forcefully stealing his personal stuff from his possession, even going so far as to pushing the small boy about while laughing giddily. What was far more unacceptable was the negligence of the teachers who ignored of the students' harassment upon his brother. Seething with clear anger marring his features, he exited the family car, his presence exuding of a dark aura.

Tetsuya was then on the verge of tears, he noted, his eyes brimming with unshed tears as the children began to taunt and circle him. Hastening his pace, he pushed the gate to the kindergarten harshly, uncaring that the gate slammed against the wall, before sharply calling his brother's name.

At the sound of his name being called and the familiar voice that came along with it, the toddler looked up timidly, shrinking back once he saw the anger bubbling in his brother's eyes.

"Get away from him," Seijuuro barked sharply, startling the kids and having them scurry away from his brother.

With the overwhelmingly high demonic aura surrounding the teenager's being, the kids _willingly _obeyed for fear of the scarlet-haired brother they never knew that the toddler had. Stepping forward to protectively scoop the child onto his arms, Seijuuro then proceeded inside the small establishment with one intent upon his mind. Come tomorrow, he told himself, the place would be closed down. No one could oppose his decision, and he damn well knew that his parents would if they were to hear the level of harassment his adopted brother was receiving and the staff's negligence to handle the matter.

The soft sniffles along his neck was more than enough not to deter with that decision he had made. With a grave notice for the employees to start packing their stuffs up, and the minimal stuff his brother had for school supplies (some were taken away) in tow, the brothers readily left the small establishment.

It was when the brothers were inside the car that Seijuuro dared to voice the question that had plagued his mind. Stroking the fine aquamarine locks of his brother's hair, his arms tightened around the toddler's waist considerably, pulling him close.

"Why didn't you tell us that you were being bullied, Tetsuya?" he asked in a calm tone.

The bluenette stiffened lightly against his hold, squirmed, before burying his face against the crook of his brother's neck.

"I didn't want Sei_-nii _to run away," Tetsuya mumbled.

"Run away? Why would I run away?" That statement offended him to a certain extent, but he decided to place his interest of his brother's situation first before his own.

"Everyone ran away when they saw me being bullied," was the child's statement, uttered as if it was matter-of-factly.

Even at his tender age, Tetsuya possessed a mindset higher than what was expected from someone of his age. It was with that mindset that the actions he should take as a child were being hindered by decisions an adult would foolishly make, not that Seijuuro had anything to say against that. Being a child brought up and abused by his biological father, the child's mindset was bound to change drastically, perhaps in a negative light. But that was not what Seijuuro wanted for his brother. He wished for the child to be open. To him. He could care less of his parents, but he needed Tetsuya to be open to him-... _It's a brotherly complex_, Akashi would think to defend himself.

"I won't run away," Seijuuro assured his brother, ruffling his baby blue locks. "Even if everybody else does, I will stay and protect you."

Tetsuya did not respond in acknowledgement of his brother's promise, but the tightening of the little arms around his neck was enough for Akashi to know that his brother understood his words.

"Would Tetsuya like to see my school?" Akashi offered then all of a sudden, pulling away to look at his brother's eyes.

At said offer, the glum expression in them was immediately replaced with excitement and happiness. Tetsuya was never one to display his emotions so evidently, thus Akashi's need to decipher through his eyes.

Just as Akashi promised, they did went to visit the teenager's academy, and the silent awe in his brother's eyes was worth the long trip as they explored the grounds.

And, just as Akashi promised, the kindergarten was shut the following day.

* * *

There was a specific, habitual act of his adopted brother that Seijuuro came to appreciate and detest at the same time. See, Tetsuya had always been ever so polite to anyone he were to meet. His exceedingly kind personality was amazingly natural to the extent that he never forget to act courteous at all times. This courteousness, apparently, just happened to be the root cause of Akashi's dilemma.

Tetsuya's mannerism of saying _Thank You _is quite common amongst children, and it was Seijuuro's mother that taught the child of it. That gesture happened to be a kiss on the cheek. Seijuuro would have to admit; he did take advantage of that instilled gesture to his brother to the fullest on any form of circumstances. Everything he did for his brother, he would ask of nothing in return but a kiss upon the cheek which the toddler of course willingly gave. Often, Akashi would playfully complain to his brother whenever they were alone of how the kisses seemed half-hearted. Always, Tetsuya would frown at that before launching himself to his brother's arms to place repetitive innocent kisses upon one of his brother's cheeks. Seijuuro was devious, and he proudly acknowledged himself that.

But at some point, the kisses had become a dilemma for the teenager. Simply out of one visit from his brother during one of his basketball practices.

Seijuuro could clearly remember the day from the very back of his mind. They were taking a break then from the exhausting and extensive drills when his brother showed up in the gym with his nanny whom he could vaguely remember was someone of the name Masako Araki. Despite the woman's reserved nature, her treatment to the bluenette was very delicate which made her considerably acceptable on the teenager's view. Per usual, Tetsuya scurried forward and Seijuuro picked him up on his arms, tightly embracing his beloved little rascal.

"Look! Akashichii's brother is here!"

In the entire sixteen years that Akashi Seijuuro had lived on the planet, he had so far only accepted a limited number of people into his life. Tetsuya was obviously one of them, and the value of the toddler in his life was immensely greater above the rest. There came after his... 'friends'. Or people who considered themselves as his friends, whichever suited all of them better. There was the 'decent' pair, and then there was the 'troublesome' pair.

The 'decent' pair consisted of teenagers by the name of Midorima Shintarou and Murasakibara Atsushi. Shintarou was a bespectacled, eccentric individual whom took immense interest on horoscopes whereas Atsushi was an extremely tall, junk-loving giant. Taking those out of consideration, their overall being was... well, decent in Seijuuro's books. The 'troublesome' pair consisted of teenagers by the name of Aomine Daiki and Kise Ryouta. Daiki was considerably decent, if not for the mannerism of how he behaved. The tanned teen was quite slack and arrogant, but his being was drastically different when it came to basketball. Ryouta, on the other hand, could _never _be decent in Seijuuro's books. The blond male had caused far too many troubles during their practices for Seijuuro to even consider him acceptable in his books.

Upon hearing the Ryouta's excited remark, Seijuuro immediately shielded his brother away from the blond male before he could get any closer. Seijuuro was discouraging the idea of the blond getting close to his brother.

"That's so mean!" Ryouta complained.

Before Seijuuro could retort, or simply ignore the blond teen, Tetsuya lightly tugged at his scarlet hair, silently demanding for his brother's attention which was given almost immediately in kind. With a hopeful glimmer in his aquamarine eyes, the toddler pointed one of his fingers at the basket before speaking to his brother.

"May I shoot the ball?" Tetsuya asked hopefully.

"I don't think you can shoot that high yet," Seijuuro answered, frowning slightly to himself.

"Please, Sei-_nii_? I want to be just like you."

How could he possibly say no to that? But it was simply hard to let the child shoot especially since the basket was simply too high from either of their reach unless, perhaps, if Seijuuro were to jump. But he could not do that since it might injure his brother.

"Ne, Aka-chin, give me Kuro-chin," Atsushi spoke from behind him, his arms already outstretched. "I can hold him up high enough for him to shoot the ball into the basket."

"... Fair enough."

Placing the ball securely in the toddler's hand, Atsushi lifted the child up into the air, keeping his hand steady just in front of the hoop. With clear excitement evident in those aquamarine hues, Tetsuya slammed the ball as hard as he possibly could inside the basket, earning proud claps from the other players. The happiness in his brother's eyes were simply priceless as he and the giant did the process repeatedly, earning claps with each ball onto the hoop.

Everything was going so well, that is, until Atsushi set his brother back onto the ground.

"Thank you, Atsu-_nii_."

And with that, Tetsuya leaned up on his tip toes to place a kiss on the giant's cheeks.

The next second had been quite chaotic as Seijuuro rushed forward, scooping the toddler onto his arms whilst Daiki and Ryouta chased after them, each offering to help the child shoot balls into the basket. The other basketball members could only grin in amusement at the comical sight of the troublesome pair chasing after the brothers; specifically the toddler.

It was then at that day that Seijuuro set clear restrictions as to whom his brother should do the gesture to using descriptive representations to back him up.

"You can only kiss Papa and Mama, and me," Seijuuro told his brother upon arriving back home.

"Why is that?" was the expected inquiry from the child.

"Because... Do you remember the story of Little Red Riding Hood?" The child gave a firm nod. "You are like Little Red Riding Hood. People like You-_nii_ and Dai-_nii _are the wolves in the story."

Tetsuya tilted his head to the side at the analogy, not fully comprehending his brother's words.

"There's only one wolf in the story. Silly Sei-_nii_," Tetsuya stated bluntly.

"There's not just one wolf in a forest," Seijuuro explained, placing his brother onto his lap. "There are lots of wolves in a forest. Your You-_nii _and Dai-_nii _are some of those wolves."

"Even Shin-_nii _and Atsu-_nii_?"

"Yes, even them," Seijuuro confirmed, pleased to know that he was slowly getting his brother to understand. "You should be careful of wolves. They will eat you if you get too close to them. Especially your You-_nii _and Dai-_nii_."

"What to do to protect myself?"

Seijuuro smirked devilishly.

The following day when Tetsuya visited him during his basketball practice, the toddler was more than prepared as he pushed at the faces of the troublesome pair when they tried to get too close to him while saying "Bad wolves" repeatedly in a loud voice.

All eyes focus solely on the quiet redhead whose lips were visibly quirking out of repressed amusement. The level of Seijuuro's brotherly complex was simply terrifying.

But to the toddler whose eyes clearly showed his idolization for his older brother, one could clearly see that the toddler could not ask for someone better than his brother. Because his brother was his best friend. His brother was his sole companion. His brother was his protector. His brother was his inspiration. Most importantly, his brother was everything to him.

His Sei-_nii_ allowed for him to sleep in the same bed as he, tucking him to sleep every single night. His Sei-_nii _always gave him everything he asked for, no matter how selfish his requests were. His Sei-_nii _played and bathed with him in the tub, blowing bubbles or entertaining him with such squeaky rubber toys. His Sei-_nii _was the one who comforted him whenever he felt down, caressing his locks ever so soothingly to calm him down.

His Sei-_nii _was the best big brother in the world, and he would not ask for any other brother than his Sei-_nii_.

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_**Read and Review! Thank you for reading! Happy Birthday once again to Roselilia!**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Kato: **__This was unplanned. But there were requests of what would it be when they would grow up, and so... THIS IS THE LAST CHAPTER, OKAY? XDDDD No incest here. Just plain brother loving his younger brother as he would of a family member. x'D If you guys want a forbidden relationship, please check __**Aniki **__on the Rated M category. It's AkaKuro and the next and last chapter of it will be up come this Saturday, hopefully. :3_

_**Disclaimer:**__ Kuroko no Basket solely belongs to Fujimaki Tadatoshi._

_If the story is not appealing to the respective reader, feel free to press the back button. Thank you for the consideration of reading this!_

* * *

_Best Big Brother in the World (10 years later)_

Memories of his adopted younger brother as a toddler would forever be the most priceless figments of the past Seijuuro would forever hold onto. Those were the precious days the child had been quite carefree towards him, resigning himself to granting his older brother's whims for affection once in a while. Those were the precious days wherein Tetsuya would still so proudly declare of him being the _"Best Big Brother in the World"_. Those were the precious days indeed...

And then, ten years later...

"Seijuuro-_nii_, please stop being a bother and get up from the bed."

His adopted brother had changed.

From that cowering, yet cute little bundle that he would so preciously and tenderly hold in his arms, Tetsuya had grown out of his shell to be what he was then; a fine, young nonchalant man with a maturity that could rival even his then twenty-six year old brother. As Tetsuya got older, so did his antics as a toddler and the bonding of the brothers had drastically reduced. As Tetsuya got older, he stopped asking for Seijuuro to carry him around in his arms, wanting to walk upon his own two feet instead. As Tetsuya got older, he stopped placing kisses upon his brother's cheek with the reasoning that it was becoming inappropriate for his age. As Tetsuya got older, he stopped coming into Seijuuro's room to be tucked into bed and to sleep beside the redhead.

Least to say, this greatly saddened the young bachelor but there was nothing that could be done. Tetsuya was growing up, so that was something to be expected of him at his age. However, despite not admitting it aloud, Seijuuro had to be honest with himself. He truly _missed _the old days. He really missed the times they used to spend together. He really missed his brother's company. He truly missed the _old _Tetsuya. There was nothing wrong of his grown version, really. Tetsuya was still the ever so polite individual that he was. He had just grown out of his cherub features to something much suitable for a fine, young man. He had just grown out of his habit of placing kisses out of gratitude, settling for something more standard such as a bow. He still avoided Daiki and Ryouta like the plague that Akashi presented them as, but...

The growing distance between the two of them just kind of hurt.

"Join me in bed, Tetsuya. It's still toasty warm," Seijuuro purred, smirking lightly in amusement as he opened one of his eyes to stare at the teen shaking him awake.

"I will be late for class, and you will be late for work," Tetsuya answered, frowning as he took grasp of both his brother's legs.

Oh well, he did try.

With the much energy he could muster, Tetsuya began pulling his brother away from the confines of his bed, yanking at his legs and effectively pulling his entire weight to the floor. The loud impact by then had failed to startle the workers on the house as they simply shook their heads in amusement at the occasional scenario between the brothers. It was almost an everyday scenario with Tetsuya waking Seijuuro up in the mornings. Seijuuro would always refuse and the only way to wake him up was if the bluenette yanked his body towards the floor. So far, the method had been very effective... and painful to the bones of Seijuuro's body.

Groaning lightly as the impact lightly hit his head, he carefully raised himself up from the floor, watching just in time as his brother left his room. As soon as the bluenette was completely out of sight, the redhead picked himself up from the floor and heaved a small sigh. Where had the old days gone? It was dismaying how his brother had gone quite cold to him, to the point that he had to question where he had gone wrong in raising the child. Indeed, where had he gone wrong?

Standing up from the floor, he made his way towards the bathroom, pausing by the side of his bed to admire the treasure he had always kept there. It was a good reminder of the good ol' days that Seijuuro refused to give up.

It was a picture of him and Tetsuya ten years ago. Back when everything was still quite a carefree world for the both of them.

* * *

Tetsuya did not understand his brother's antics even the slightest bit. For someone of his age, his Seijuuro-_nii _should be much mature and should act more with a bit of sophistication. But the way Tetsuya saw it, his brother was withdrawing himself back, and that concerned him. Despite how he had changed out from his old nature, he was still that idolizing younger brother Seijuuro had known. He was exceedingly thankful of the male for he was the very first friend he had ever had, and the only brother he had every knew. It was his Seijuuro-_nii _who taught him how to break out of his shell and to make friends with others. So far, he did manage to befriend two: an American-Japanese transfer student, Kagami Taiga, and his cousin, Momoi Satsuki. And with his joining of the basketball club, he was able to interact with more people.

When his foster parents asked him how he was faring in his academic life, he did inform them that in a polite tone without making his satisfaction all too obvious. He had expected for his brother to be happy for him, but when he turned to look at his brother then, all he saw was a forced smile and something else he could not fathom.

Even he could sense it; the fact that the two of them had grown increasingly distant. But what was he to do? His brother was then a working twenty-six year old male who probably had not time for someone like him. Being the considerate brother that he was, he let things be. If only he knew what the other thought. If only they both did.

Once his brother, fully dressed in his work attire had sat down with them on the dining table, the elder Akashi cleared his throat, asking for the attention of his two sons.

"Your mother and I will be going on a trip today and won't be back until the following week..."

With clear disinterest present in Seijuuro's features, he gave a curt nod without looking up from his plate. He had been used to their parents' occasional trips to unknown places, and thus he was accustomed of their absence in the house.

"That is fine. Have a good trip," was the only response he gave, taking a bite from his meal.

"... So I trust that you look after your brother, Seijuuro," his father continued with a barely repressed sigh.

"I don't need to be taken care of, father. I can manage on my-"

Whatever excuse Tetsuya was about to say, it was cut off as his brother spoke in response to the request, cutting the bluenette off.

"Of course."

Tetsuya glanced with unease at his preoccupied brother, contemplating if he should voice out a protest in consideration of the other. He really did not like getting into his brother's way, especially when it came to his work. Sensing a gaze directed upon him, Seijuuro lifted his eyes to meet his brother's hesitant ones before allowing a small smile to curl his lips. Whatever might be processing through his brother's head, he would rather not have the teen entertain it for the time being.

Here was a chance for them to rekindle their gradually diminishing relationship. There was no way that he would let such chance slip through his fingers just because his brother refused to cooperate.

Upon finishing his meal and completely preparing himself, he silently bid his goodbyes to their parents and awaited inside his car for his brother to finish up. Without as much as a word exchanged between the two of them, Seijuuro drove off towards the direction of his old academy, which had then became his brother's present high school.

The silence that enveloped the two of them every single day under the same circumstances had always been considerably awkward. There was nothing for them to talk about, and even if they were to converse, the silence that would follow thereafter was more awkward than the previous one. There was so much for Seijuuro to ask, like... How was the teen doing at school? Did he make any other new friends? How was his academic life going for him? Which string was he then with the basketball club? Had he found someone he likes? Certain things an older brother would be curious of about their younger. There was so little for Tetsuya to ask, like... How was he doing at work? Other questions bubbling up on his mind were too personal, and if Seijuuro knew of them, he would have wished that his brother had long spoken up.

Because those other questions centered around... _"When can we go back to how things were before?" _They longed for each other's company, but neither of them voiced it out.

The car stopped directly in front of the school gates, and with a small murmur of "_Thank You"_, Tetsuya made a move to exit the car, but paused when his brother cleared his throat, asking him of his attention even just for a while. Without glancing away from the front, Seijuuro spoke out in a low voice.

"Don't... go planning on asking your friends if you could stay over their place for the whole week, Tetsuya. Like I said, taking care of you will not be a burden to me."

"... I was not thinking of that, Seijuuro-_nii_." But the hesitance in his response indicated differently.

Tetsuya could not be sure if he had heard things right by then, as the bell rang shortly thereafter he heard it. But upon exiting the car and closing the door behind him, he heard a low mumble almost inaudible to his ears.

_"If you say so, my little rascal."_

It had been long, so long since his brother used that pet name for him. And the utterance of it left him frozen for about a good few seconds before he collected and forced himself to move.

* * *

"Tetsuya, sleep in my room tonight."

"No, thank you."

"That was not a question... Please."

Tetsuya had to purse his lips at that, more so upon hearing the last word. As he grew out from his old shell as a frail toddler, he had come to know that that specific word 'please' was something his brother never used with anyone in particular, except for him. In a way, it was Seijuuro's usual way of asking his brother to place his trust upon him and that did nit cease to change over the years. Just as much, it was Seijuuro's usual way to make the bluenette succumb to his antics that had to be quite childish for a man of his age.

"Seijuuro-_nii_, we're too old for that," Tetsuya reasoned, shifting his footing in unease.

"It will be just like ten years ago, Tetsuya. Think of it as that," was the nonchalant response.

_Ten years ago, we used to be so close. Ten years after, I think I do not know my brother any better than his friends do._

Nodding only in resignation to his request, Tetsuya headed for his brother's room, opening one of the closets to take out a spare futon, but his brother refused.

"We can both sleep in the bed. Just like before-"

"Ten years ago, we were still very close," Tetsuya stated bluntly, getting quite irritated of his brother's repetitive use of the phrase '_Just like before_'. Because those precious memories were... a thing of the past.

The painful reminder that things had changed between them was not exactly a welcomed thought to the bluenette.

A glimmer of understanding crossed Seijuuro's eyes at his brother's statement. At least, then he knew that his brother possessed the same sentiments as he did. Allowing for a small smile to cross his lips, he approached his brother without hesitance and lifted him up on his arms, much to the bluenette's protest. Unceremoniously, he tossed the teen to his bed, joining him once he had chuckles his blazer and necktie to the side.

"Seijuuro-_nii_, this is not funny," Tetsuya stated with a frown, squirming as his brother embraced him from behind.

"It's not supposed to be, my little rascal," Seijuuro stated with no hints of amusement lacing his voice. "I missed your company, but you've been drifting away."

Tetsuya stilled from his struggles at that comment, his eyes shifting to the side in an attempt to look at his older brother. Knowing that his brother would not loosen his hold one bit, he simply laid still and listened to whatever his brother had to possibly say.

"You've changed," Seijuuro breathed against his neck, nuzzling his nose against his brother's fluffy tresses.

Soft, hesitant hands wrapped around those encircling his waist in a gentle grip. His brother's voice, it was displeased. It was unhappy, and it sounded of evident longing.

"We've changed," Tetsuya corrected.

"You changed the most..." Seijuuro countered. "I have always been waiting like the person I was ten years ago. But you..."

The embrace about his waist tightened ever so considerably, allowing for Tetsuya to shift and face his brother. Those heterochromatic hues were distant, as if they were being blinded by a memory that was slowly being recalled.

"I miss my little rascal."

"We missed you too," Tetsuya answered, pertaining to his old and new self as he extended one of his hands to brush against the locks of his brother's hair. "I'm still your little rascal. Just... grown."

"And distant," Seijuuro continued with a shake of his head. "Tell me. What am I to you now?"

A small smile curled Tetsuya's lips at that inquiry, both of his arms then extending forward and wrapping themselves tightly around his brother's neck, just as he would ten years ago when he said those words to his brother. He knew what his brother was asking, and he had no reason not to give the answer he desired to hear.

"Sei-_nii _is still the best big brother in the world for me," Tetsuya stated, using the nickname he had not said for so many years.

His brother's lips curled up considerably at the lovely response that came from his very lips, and the soft affectionate murmur of _my little rascal _left his lips for the second time. And indeed, his brother really was still the best brother he ever had, will _only _have. Whether he was his Sei-_nii _from ten years ago, or his Seijuuro-_nii_ of the present, his brother had always been the best brother he could ever hope of having.

_**End.**_

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_**Kato: **__End. Finito. x'D No more continuation. Thank you for reading! Please review!_


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